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U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) criticized the Biden administration’s purported plans to resume aid into Palestinian-controlled territories on Aug. 16. A press release issued by Cruz’s office said the junior senator was reacting to a Washington Free Beacon report about the U.S. State Department’s attempts to be exempted from U.S. anti-terrorism laws to restart the aid.
“Joe Biden and Biden administration officials are pathologically obsessed with undermining Israel,” Cruz said in the release. “They made a day one decision to pour hundreds of millions of American taxpayer dollars into areas controlled by Palestinian terrorists, despite knowing that such actions would benefit terrorist groups that have the blood of Americans and Israelis on their hands.”
Cruz argued in the release the State Department officials were well-aware of the consequences that could result from exempting themselves from the restrictions.
“I led Republican efforts to stop such payments at the beginning of the Biden administration,” the senator said. “Biden officials told Congress and the public that what they were doing was consistent with United States laws.”
Per the lawmaker, it was apparent the White House wasn’t telling the truth at the time.
According to the release, in April 2021, Cruz and 17 Republican senators wrote Sec. of State Anthony Blinken to request the State Department pause plans to resume Palestinian aid until it “accounts for statutory restrictions and remedies known deficiencies in the distribution of such assistance.”
Cruz said the Washington Free Beacon article shows the State Department isn’t sincere about maintaining strong relations with Israel.
“The report provides yet another example in which State Department officials told Congress that they support the U.S.-Israel relationship and are committed to countering Palestinian terrorism and then — out of view — they pushed policies designed to undermine that relationship and benefit terrorist groups,” the senator said, per his office. “These trends have made congressional oversight and the expeditious vetting of nominees for Middle East-related positions intractable.”